Rubio runs to district cross country crown

Gerren is right on his tail as Tigers record 1-2 punch

Juan Rubio collected another first place finish, this time, at the allimportant 23-3A district cross country meet in Navasota. Reporter/Mike Brown
NAVASOTA—Juan Rubio and Jacob Gerren have been following each other around all season long.

They continued that habit Wednesday as they once again finished 1-2, this time at the allimportant 23-3A District Cross Country Meet.

On the strength of Rubio and Gerren’s efforts, the team finished second to champion Giddings, which had five runners finish in the top seven, behind Rubio and Gerren.

The Tigers advance to the regional meet at Humble Atascocita High School on Saturday, Nov. 6.

Gerren was 31/100ths of a second behind Rubio as Rubio clocked in at 15:34.01 despite feeling ill and Gerren 15:34.33— both personal bests.

Gerren dedicated his efforts to the late Garry White, the former Rockdale track star who was a mentor and friend, who passed away last Saturday.

Jacob Gerren was .31 seconds behind teammate Juan Rubio at the district meet.
“Jacob came up short of the first place medal, but not short on heart,” said Coach Liz McQuitter. “It was awesome to see. Juan ran his best despite not feeling well.”

The girls finished with all of them running their personal best times, but because they did not have the required five runners, they were not eligible to place.

Emily Norris was the top Lady Tiger with a timing of 13:23 for 16th place.

She was followed by Aubrie Litchauer in 27th place with a time of 14:07, Amy Pruett in 28th at 14:08 and Sylvia Avila in 30th place with a time of 14:22.

“All in all it has been a great season thus far and while the girls season comes to an end, they were so committed and worked hard,” McQuitter said. “It paid off in their improvement and with a fifth runner, they would have brought home a first place finish at Somerville and placed at a couple of other meets.”